Giacomo Balla's Rome Apartment Reopens as Museum

The apartment of Futurist painter Giacomo Balla (Turin, 1871 – Rome, 1958) at Via Oslavia 39B in Rome's Prati district has reopened to the public after a complex restoration overseen by the Soprintendenza. Balla lived there with his wife Elisa from 1929 until his death in 1958; his daughters Elica and Luce remained until the 1990s. The reopening follows a 2021 pilot project curated by Bartolomeo Pietromarchi and Domitilla Dardi for MAXXI, which proved successful. In 2023, Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano visited privately with MAXXI president Alessandro Giuli, leading to a decision to make the house permanently accessible. The state, through the Ministry of Culture and MAXXI, will acquire Casa Balla as public patrimony. From May 26 to October 24, 2021, guided tours were offered on weekends; the program includes the exhibition "Casaballa. Dalla casa all'universo e ritorno" at MAXXI's Galleria 5, featuring drawings, objects, sketches, and furnishings from Casa Balla alongside contemporary design works by artists including Ila Bêka & Louise Lemoine, Carlo Benvenuto, Alex Cecchetti, Emiliano Maggi, Leonardo Sonnoli, and Space Popular. The project is realized with the Soprintendenza Speciale di Roma, the Direzione Generale Creatività Contemporanea del Mic, and Banca d'Italia. Balla was a key Futurist, signatory of the 1914 manifesto "Le vêtement masculin futuriste," and creator of frescoes for the Bal Tic Tac cabaret. His work was exhibited at MoMA New York in 1949.